Ty Burrell

Tyler Gerald Burrell (born August 22, 1967) is an American actor. Burrell is best known for playing Phil Dunphy on the ABC sitcom Modern Family (2009–2020), for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and five Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Burrell also had starring roles on the television series Out of Practice (2005–2006) and Back to You (2007–2008), and acted in films such as Evolution, Black Hawk Down (both 2001), Dawn of the Dead (2004), The Incredible Hulk (2008), and Muppets Most Wanted (2014). He voiced characters in the animated films Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014), Finding Dory (2016), and Storks (2016). On stage, Burrell made his Broadway debut playing Lennox in the revival of the William Shakespeare play Macbeth (2000).

Early life and education Tyler Gerald Burrell was born in Grants Pass, Oregon, on August 22, 1967, the son of teacher Sheri Rose and family therapist Gary Gerald Burrell (1940–1989). He has a younger brother, Duncan. He is mostly of English and German descent, though he discovered via Finding Your Roots that he is also of 1/16th African-American ancestry through his great-great-grandmother, a formerly enslaved girl from Tennessee who became a homesteader in Oregon. He grew up in Applegate, Oregon, near the California border. He attended Hidden Valley High School and worked as a bartender at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Continuing his education at Penn State University, he earned an MFA and was a member of the Theatre 100 Company along with Keegan-Michael Key. In 1997 and 1999, Burrell worked as a festival actor at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. He has also stated that for a period of time in graduate school, he lived out of his van to save money.

Career Burrell's first credited film roles were 2001's Evolution and Black Hawk Down. He subsequently appeared in the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead, and in several stage roles (such as 2000's Broadway production of Macbeth, and the off-Broadway plays Corners, The Blue Demon, Burn This, and Show People).

He was a co-writer and actor in the original production of the offbeat comedy The Red Herring O' Happiness directed by Russell Dyball. Burrell's stage work also includes writing and working in the off Broadway play Babble with his brother, Duncan. He has also made an appearance as a New Jersey prosecutor in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

After that, Burrell was cast as Oliver Barnes, a shallow but well-meaning plastic surgeon, on the CBS sitcom Out of Practice (2005–06), also created by screenwriter Christopher Lloyd. The show was canceled in May 2006, with eight episodes remaining unaired in the United States. After the show's cancellation, he played Allan Arbus in the film Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus. In the same year, he also appeared in Friends with Money and The Darwin Awards, before playing one of the two leads in the world premiere of Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? by Caryl Churchill on stage at the Royal Court Theatre in London.

In 2007, he had a small role in the film National Treasure: Book of Secrets as the curator of the White House followed by a starring role in the sitcom Back to You on Fox later that same year. On the show, created by Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd, Burrell played a field reporter (alongside Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton). The show was canceled in 2008.

In the 2008 Marvel film adaptation of the comic The Incredible Hulk Burrell played Leonard Samson (without superpowers) who had a short relationship with Betty Ross.

He had a lead role as Realtor Phil Dunphy in the acclaimed ABC situation comedy Modern Family which was also created by Christopher Lloyd and Steve Levitan. For his performance, he received eight consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (2010–2017), winning the award twice in 2011 and 2014.

He also received nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series for his role, sharing the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series with his co stars. He was the recipient of the individual SAG award in 2014, defeating Alec Baldwin, who had previously won the award seven years in a row.

Burrell also appears as Phil in commercials for National Association of Realtors.

In November 2014, Burrell signed an overall deal with 20th Century Fox Television to develop his own comedy projects. In July 2020, his overall deal with 20th Century Fox continued with the establishment of his own production company, Desert Whale Productions.

His web series Boondoggle, loosely based on Burrell's own life, debuted in June 2016 on ABC.com and ABCd. He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series in July 2017.

Ventures and charity work Burrell owns The Eating Establishment, a restaurant in Park City, Utah, as well as two bars in Salt Lake City called Bar X and Beer Bar, located next to each other with interconnecting doors.

When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down Salt Lake City's bars and restaurants in March 2020, Burrell and his wife used $100,000 of their own money to create Tip Your Server, a crowd-sourced online fund to help out-of-work wait staff in Utah, where they had previously kept their main residence.

Personal life

Burrell married his wife, Holly, on August 18, 2000. They resided in New York City until moving to Salt Lake City in 2008. They still own a two-bedroom apartment in New York's Astoria neighborhood, which they rent out. At one point, they relocated to Southern California for Burrell's work on Modern Family. In March 2010, Burrell said that they had adopted a baby girl and another girl two years later. Burrell and his family moved to Salt Lake City from Los Angeles after Modern Family ended in 2020. In an interview with People, he said that he has "no regrets" about moving his family there, as it is "a great place to raise the kids".

Burrell is a self-described lifelong fan of the Oregon Ducks, Portland Trail Blazers, New York Mets, and the Los Angeles Rams.

Filmography

Film Year Title RoleNotes 2001 Evolution Colonel Flemming Black Hawk Down Timothy A. Wilkinson 2004 Dawn of the Dead Steve Marcus In Good Company Enrique Colon 2005 Down in the Valley Sheriff / Cowboy 2006 Friends with Money Other Aaron The Darwin Awards Emile Fur Allan Arbus 2007 National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets Connor 2008 The Incredible Hulk Dr. Leonard Samson 2009 Leaves of Grass Professor Sorenson 2010 Fair Game Fred Morning Glory Paul McVee 2011 Butter Bob Pickler 2012 Goats Frank Whitman 2014 The Skeleton Twins Rich Levitt Mr. Peabody & Sherman Mr. Hector Peabody (voice) Muppets Most Wanted Jean Pierre Napoleon 2016 Finding Dory Bailey (voice) 2020 A Modern Farewell Modern Family documentary 2020–2022 Duncanville Jack Harris (voice) Main role 2026 Rick and Morty Bob (voice) Episode: "Jer Bud"

Theatre Year Title Role VenueRef.1997 Henry V Gower Adams Theatre, Utah Shakespeare Festival 1998-1999 Twelfth Night AntonioUnderstudy for Orsino Shakespeare Theatre, Washington DC 1999 King John The Earl of Essex Shakespeare Theatre, Washington DC A Midsummer Night's Dream Oberon Adams Theatre, Utah Shakespeare Festival 2000 Coriolanus Lieutenant to Aufidius / Roman Senator Shakespeare Theatre, Washington DC Macbeth Lennox Music Box Theatre, Broadway 2002 Burn This Burton Union Square Theatre, Off-Broadway 2004 Richard III Henry Stafford The Public Theater, Off-Broadway 2006 Show People Tom Second Stage Theatre, Off-Broadway Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? Sam Royal Court Theatre, London 2011 Modern Family (episode: "Good Cop Bad Dog") 2012 Modern Family (episode: "Lifetime Supply") 2013 Modern Family (episode: "Mistery Date") 2014 Modern Family (episode: "Spring-a-Ding-Fling") 2015 Modern Family (episode: "Crying Out Loud") 2016 Modern Family (episode: "The Party") 2017 Modern Family (episode: "Grab It") Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Series Boondoggle Screen Actors Guild Awards 2009 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series Modern Family (season 1) 2010 Modern Family (season 2) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2011 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 3) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2012 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 4) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2013 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 5) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2014 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 6) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2015 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 7) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series 2016 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy SeriesModern Family (season 8) Outstanding Male Actor in a Comedy Series